Olivia arrives at school at 7:15am every morning on the dot. 

This girl is never late. 

 She’s always the first kid in the class and the teachers celebrate her arrival like she’s JLo walking into the Met Gala.

Good for Olivia right?

Well, no - because Olivia is not my kid, and I need to figure out a way to beat her to school.

 My daughter Brooke is obsessed with being the first one there and this past week when we tried like hell to do it.

It reminded me of some lessons I’ve learned in the gym and in fitness and how they creep into actual life from time to time.

Sometimes kids do teach you something.

Lesson #1

In order to get a desired outcome, there are multiple steps/actions/choices that need to take place first.  They don’t just happen.  YOU NEED TO MAKE THEM HAPPEN.

For Brooke’s desired outcome to occur, the following things needed to happen:

1. Take a bath the night before and go to bed at 7:30pm (to get enough sleep so she’s not a psycho)
2. Wake up at 6:15am (earlier than normal)
3. Get dressed on her own and brush her own teeth while Dad gets her sister ready
4. Leave the house by 7:05am
5. Sprint to the school door potentially hurdling over/tackling bystanders

Brooke did not want to do any of these things.  The choice was not an easy one, but it was her choice to make whether she would get these done.

Kids have a hard time connecting the link between choices and outcomes. 

They just expect things to happen.

If you make certain choices, you get certain outcomes.  They don’t quite get that.

Guess what: neither do most gym goers.

Let’s say your desired outcome is to start working out 3 times per week before work.

The following things need to happen:

1. You need a gym membership or a place to train in an area that is no further than 10 minutes from your home or work.
2. You need to wake up by 6am to have a meal and to be in the gym by 7am to train for an hour until 8am. You need to shower and change and be out of the gym by 8:30am to be at your desk by 9am.
3. To wake up at 6am and not feel like complete dog shit you need to be in bed by 10:30pm

This is the bare minimum of things that need to occur for your desired outcome. 

But the list does not include the things that need to be omitted or sacrificed:

1. Money for the gym membership
2. Not hitting snooze on the alarm and scrolling on your phone for 20 minutes in bed
3. Not watching the end of the football game or the 4^th episode in a row of that Netflix show
4. Not getting drunk the night before and being hungover

Might not seem like much but believe me it is for a lot of people.

Takeaway:

If you want a desired outcome, figure out what the costs are and be willing to pay them.  If you’re not willing to pay the price the outcome will not occur.

Lesson #2

(Good and Bad) Things happen when you put people on a clock

The clock is a valuable tool in fitness or in life.  But it depends on how you use it.

For Brooke and the fam, having a deadline of 7:05am to get out the door puts a sense of urgency and stress on the situation that can make things rough.

She doesn’t get to do all the things she wants to do (color, play, watch Tv)

Dad is rushing her (We have to leave now!!) and losing his patience.

But – if the clock isn’t on there is no way we would be out the door and be first in class.

The clock demands action and takes no prisoners. 

It doesn’t give a shit if you get to school first or not – it’s ticking no matter what.

Is the outcome worth the cost?  Dealer’s choice – only those playing can decide.

What about in the gym?

I’ve had a lot of success with clients running a protocol called a Density Block.

We set the clock for 12 minutes.  We pick one upper body and one lower body movement.

We alternate the exercises with the goal of completing at least 50 reps of each in the 12 minutes.

You are always on the clock – and people love it.

It brings the best out of them and gives them a short time horizon – something they can achieve quickly and improve upon week over week.

But short time horizons have downfalls, too.

Most people have goals in the gym that they expect to happen in a few weeks.

And for most, that’s simply not enough time.

If they expanded their time horizon to 4 or 6 or even 12 months, they would have a much better chance of achieving said goal and staying on track.

Takeaway:

Put yourself on an appropriate time horizon for the goal.  Make it short enough that there is urgency but long enough so that the outcome is achievable and not impossible.

Lesson #3

Sometimes it just feels good to win.  Be process-oriented but results-driven.

Spoiler: Brooke got to school first.

And it was glorious.

Her teachers greeted her like she was JLo at the Met Gala.

Olivia was Ben Affleck tugging on that cigarette – beaten, dismayed and confused.

Brooke decided on a desired outcome, paid the costs involved, and MADE IT HAPPEN.

It’s good to be process oriented because that’s the easiest thing to control.

It’s about doing the work – that’s what sustains you in the gym, in your career or in your life.

But the point of doing the work can be just about the work – or it can be about achieving a goal or outcome.

Don’t lose sight of that – most of the time it’s the outcome that matters.

And if you get the outcome you want, celebrate it. 

Don’t take it for granted and don’t downplay it – you made it happen.

Now go do it again.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for reading.  If you'd like these in your inbox,  Subscribe Here